tax transcripts and identity theft fears

[Alijef 0]

Here's a few questions for ya'll,

My father is co-sponsoring my fiancee's (from Brasil) visa, and has reached a point where he is now questioning how much personal info he wants to have "floating around". He tells me he called USCIS and they told him that he could send the info along with form I-134 into the USCIS office ... and that they would process it and send it to the Brasilian consulate. This sounds absurd to me, as the USCIS seems quite incompetent of doing much of anything when it comes to coordinating paperwork.

First question: Has anyone gone this route - sent the I-134 document into the USCIS to be "processed" and then sent along to the consulate for the interview? What do you know about this option?

Second question: Is the Tax transcript absolutely necessary to prove past income? (as he is retired and will be using past income and bank statements for his supporting evidence)

Third: By having a notary public signature on the I-134 form, is the supporting evidence SO important, as a notary public (according to my father) is supposed to look at supporting paperwork before signing off on the form????

Any other suggestions with this issue would be greatly appreciated.

thanks,

Alijef

[Dan J 277]

Here's a few questions for ya'll,

My father is co-sponsoring my fiancee's (from Brasil) visa, and has reached a point where he is now questioning how much personal info he wants to have "floating around". He tells me he called USCIS and they told him that he could send the info along with form I-134 into the USCIS office ... and that they would process it and send it to the Brasilian consulate. This sounds absurd to me, as the USCIS seems quite incompetent of doing much of anything when it comes to coordinating paperwork.

First question: Has anyone gone this route - sent the I-134 document into the USCIS to be "processed" and then sent along to the consulate for the interview? What do you know about this option?

Second question: Is the Tax transcript absolutely necessary to prove past income? (as he is retired and will be using past income and bank statements for his supporting evidence)

Third: By having a notary public signature on the I-134 form, is the supporting evidence SO important, as a notary public (according to my father) is supposed to look at supporting paperwork before signing off on the form????

Any other suggestions with this issue would be greatly appreciated.

thanks,

Alijef

1. As far as i know, thats not an option, you have to send the I-134 to your fiance, who will bring it to the interview.

2. No, you can use Tax returns or pay stubs instead. But if your father is retired and doesn't have income, then that doesn't really work. If he has a pension plan of some kind you can use the 1099 form that it will generate. Otherwise he would need to provide statements as to the value of his assets. He wont have to provide documentation for everything, just what is necessary to prove support. If income is sufficient, he can leave off assets, and if it assets are sufficient, then he wont need to document income.

3. Well the notary only verifies the signature of the document. He or she will not verify if the claims of assets or income are accurate or true. Thats why its necessary to provide the supporting documentation.

[rebeccajo 14]

Check out accounts of other members who have processed through the Brazilian consulate. Or email the consulate and ask if a sealed I134 packet can be delivered to them prior to the interview. You definately wouldn't want to be sending such a packet to USCIS. It would have to be sent directly to the overseas consulate. Most times, if the joint sponsor has concerns about the packet, they send it sealed to the beneficiary and ask them to deliver it at the interivew in its sealed condition. This involves some trust but it's usually the best method.

Income is income - it doesn't have to be from gainful employment. Your fathers Social Security and pension income is acceptable for the affidavit as long as it documented as Dan suggested.

Notaries aren't required to inspect attachments or even inspect the affidavit. They only need to see your father sign it. I notarize stuff all the time and I don't give a damn what the document says - I am only witnessing the person sign it before me. Notaries don't certify to the truth or accuracy of a document - they only certify the other person signing it.

[pushbrk 13,098]

Check out accounts of other members who have processed through the Brazilian consulate. Or email the consulate and ask if a sealed I134 packet can be delivered to them prior to the interview. You definately wouldn't want to be sending such a packet to USCIS. It would have to be sent directly to the overseas consulate. Most times, if the joint sponsor has concerns about the packet, they send it sealed to the beneficiary and ask them to deliver it at the interivew in its sealed condition. This involves some trust but it's usually the best method.

Income is income - it doesn't have to be from gainful employment. Your fathers Social Security and pension income is acceptable for the affidavit as long as it documented as Dan suggested.

Notaries aren't required to inspect attachments or even inspect the affidavit. They only need to see your father sign it. I notarize stuff all the time and I don't give a damn what the document says - I am only witnessing the person sign it before me. Notaries don't certify to the truth or accuracy of a document - they only certify the other person signing it.

Yes, and no. I think the sponsor was misinformed by USCIS but he certainly can send his I-134 directly to the Consulate.

I know you're a notary but I've had the notary at my insurance office certify that she saw my wife's original passport and that the pages signed by the notary were true copies of the pages of her passport. This was for the ITIN application. That's more than certifying a signature. My wife wasn't even present.

Of course, you can't certify to the truth or accuracy of an I-134 or its supporting documents or to the truth of statements made above any signature you're attesting to but you can attest to having seen the original and that the attached copies are true copies. Except for passports, no other documents come to mind where this would be applicable or useful. People get passport copies notarized pretty often.

[Kez/JWolf 6]

I too am a notary and I am not allowed to do anything other than certify that the person who is signing the document has evidence of their ID... I can not comment on the content of the document but I can verify that it is a true copy of an original document as long as I have the original and the copy.... I can not certify that the content is true...

194.515 Notarial acts. (1) In taking an acknowledgment, the notarial officer must determine, either from personal knowledge or from satisfactory evidence, that the person appearing before the officer and making the acknowledgment is the person whose true signature is on the instrument.

(2) In taking a verification upon oath or affirmation, the notarial officer must determine, either from personal knowledge or from satisfactory evidence, that the person appearing before the officer and making the verification is the person whose true signature is on the statement verified.

(3) In witnessing or attesting a signature the notarial officer must determine, either from personal knowledge or from satisfactory evidence, that the signature is that of the person appearing before the officer and named therein.

(4) In certifying or attesting a copy of a document or other item, the notarial officer must determine that the proffered copy is a full, true and accurate transcription or reproduction of that which was copied.

(5) In making or noting a protest of a negotiable instrument a notarial officer must determine the matters set forth in ORS 73.0505.

(6) A notarial officer has satisfactory evidence that a person is the person whose true signature is on a document if that person:

(a) Is personally known to the notarial officer;

(B) Is identified upon the oath or affirmation of a credible witness personally known to the notarial officer; or

© Is identified on the basis of identification documents.

(7) For purposes of this section, “personally known” means familiarity with a person resulting from interactions with that person over a period of time sufficient to eliminate every reasonable doubt that the person has the identity claimed.

(8) For purposes of subsection (6)© of this section, a notarial officer has satisfactory evidence upon which to identify a person if:

(a) The person produces at least one current document issued by the federal government or a state, county, municipal or other local government and containing the person’s photograph, signature and physical description;

(B) The person produces at least two current documents, each issued by an institution, a business entity, the federal government or a state, county, municipal or other local government and each containing the person’s signature; or

© The person is confined in a correctional facility and has been positively identified through examination or comparison of official government documents or records.

(9) If a notarial officer is also an employee of a financial institution, as defined in ORS 706.008, and the person to be identified is a customer of the financial institution, one of the two current documents required under subsection (8)(B) of this section may be a signature card signed by the customer and held by the financial institution in connection with the financial institution’s transactions with the customer. [1983 c.393 §3; 1993 c.545 §125; 1997 c.185 §2; 1999 c.59 §49; 2003 c.533 §1]

http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/194.html

Kez

[rebeccajo 14]

pushbrk, notaries can't attest that documents are true and accurate copies. If they are, that is a different function than notarization.

Here's further clarification of what notaries can and cannot do.

"Guiding Principle IX of The Notary Public Code of Professional Responsibility reads: "The Notary shall respect the privacy of each signer and not divulge or use personal or proprietary information disclosed during execution of a notarial act for other than an official purpose." What this means is that a Notary must take care in the course of his or her duties not to make needless intrusions into a signer's privacy.

While it is often necessary to scan or otherwise peruse portions of a document to glean data for a journal entry, a Notary Public should never read a signer's document out of sheer curiosity. Checking a document to see if there are any blank spaces or to verify the signer's name is entered correctly is reasonable, but scrutinizing the text to satisfy an idle interest or to get information for personal gain is inexcusable. "

http://www.nationalnotary.org/news/index.c...y&newsID=45

[pushbrk 13,098]

pushbrk, notaries can't attest that documents are true and accurate copies. If they are, that is a different function than notarization.

Here's further clarification of what notaries can and cannot do.

"Guiding Principle IX of The Notary Public Code of Professional Responsibility reads: "The Notary shall respect the privacy of each signer and not divulge or use personal or proprietary information disclosed during execution of a notarial act for other than an official purpose." What this means is that a Notary must take care in the course of his or her duties not to make needless intrusions into a signer's privacy.

While it is often necessary to scan or otherwise peruse portions of a document to glean data for a journal entry, a Notary Public should never read a signer's document out of sheer curiosity. Checking a document to see if there are any blank spaces or to verify the signer's name is entered correctly is reasonable, but scrutinizing the text to satisfy an idle interest or to get information for personal gain is inexcusable. "

http://www.nationalnotary.org/news/index.c...y&newsID=45

Nevertheless....

Kez, also a notary posted...

(4) In certifying or attesting a copy of a document or other item, the notarial officer must determine that the proffered copy is a full, true and accurate transcription or reproduction of that which was copied.

And, as I already stated, I've had my passport copy and my wife's and my step-daughter's certified as true copies by my local notary.

So perhaps you have some authority you didn't know about. Or perhaps your State has different limitations. For instance, a Maryland Notary cannot notarize a passport or cerify the authenticity of any document. California Notaries cannot notarize passports. I'm not sure about other documents.

From your State, West Virginia's 2005 Notary Handbook...

Certification of documents: When a notary is asked to certify that a

photocopy of a document is a true facsimile, the notary may make the

certification if these conditions are met:

1. The notary receives a signed written request stating that:

a. a certified copy of the document can’t be obtained from the

office of any recorder or custodian of public documents in this

state; and

b. making a copy of the document doesn’t violate any state or

federal law;

2. The notary keeps a copy of the facsimile on file. A special form of

certification should be used (see page 8).

Edited September 24, 2007 by pushbrk

[Kez/JWolf 6]

In that case you are certifying that it is a true copy not that the content is true.... it could be a document full of lies... all I would be certifying is that the copy is a true copy of the original.... not that the content is true or accurate...

Kez

[pushbrk 13,098]

In that case you are certifying that it is a true copy not that the content is true.... it could be a document full of lies... all I would be certifying is that the copy is a true copy of the original.... not that the content is true or accurate...

Kez

Exactly.

[Alijef 0]

OK everyone, thanks for the help ... I'll get into contact with the consulate to see what they say about sending them the form direct and go from there ...